Quaranteam - 808 State Ch. 02-04

"So, Ms. Kopua, as I'm sure you can figure out, you are not infected with DuoHalo. The answers to your other questions are grim. Children under the age of 11 seem largely unaffected by DuoHalo, but they can carry it and infect adults. For males 18 and older, current reports show about an 80% mortality rate, but, as I mentioned earlier, Hawai'i appears to have a higher rate -- you seem to be above 90% currently for men -- the prevalence of multigenerational families living under the same roof is thought to be a significant factor."

Lieutenant Knox put her hand to her forehead, briefly, then carried on. "For minors between 11 and 17... There have been no survivors. In the US or in other nations. I'm terribly sorry to have to tell you this, but your cousins all succumbed to DuoHalo, as did their father and your boyfriend. Your parents were not infected with DuoHalo, but unfortunately have also both passed due to complications from a severe Covid-19 infection."

Evelyn was slumped back in her chair, her hands over her face. "That's it. I'm doomed. My entire family, my future, gone. Our kuleana, I'm going to fail..."

"Ms. Kopua, we're here because President Pelosi instituted Operation: Rawhide. With the global supply chains in tatters, food security is of critical importance. There are a lot of livestock across the nation that are going to be either going feral or starving before too long. There's a similar program for agricultural foodstuffs, but there's much less of an associated public health risk there -- it's a significant loss if half the wheat in Kansas or Montana rots in the field, but at least you can turn the soil over and bury it fairly well. If a herd of a 100 cows starves to death, or succumbs to disease because there was no rancher to catch it early when it could be treated, that's a major clean-up. What if it were a herd of a thousand? Ten thousand? Most ranchers and ranchhands are male, and we expect very few to survive unless measures are taken. There's an experimental vaccine -- it has some... unusual aspects, but it works.

"I'm sorry we didn't get here in time to help your parents, but I'm here to offer you access to the vaccine if you'll run your ranch and manage your herd and some other herds -- at least until the numbers can be reduced to a more economically stable baseline. How many people do you need to run your ranch, Ms. Kopua? Assuming they don't have much livestock experience."

"With the herd now, I know I can manage with three unskilled helpers. My dad was able to handle the day to day by himself, as long as Mom or I were there for the long drives. I guess it depends on how quickly they can learn, and how many head of cattle we're talking about. You want me to teach people to wrangle and rustle other herds? For the government?" Evelyn was skeptical of what the Army Lieutenant seemed to be telling her.

"Is it still rustling if the former owner is dead from the pandemic? You'd be protecting not only those cattle, but whomever they might harm while they're in the process of going feral." Lieutenant Knox leaned toward Evelyn, intent on convincing the other woman. "I may not know much about Hawaiian history, but I know that one of the oldest and largest private ranches in the US is right here on this island, and it got started because the founder was asked by King Kamehameha, the government at the time, to hunt, round up, and manage the feral cattle on the island. We're asking you to do the same thing.

"But we need to talk a bit more about the vaccine. As I said, it has some unusual characteristics. It's VERY effective against DuoHalo, but it cannot be given directly to a man -- for them, it's even deadlier than DuoHalo."

Evelyn squeezed her eyes shut as she processed what she had just learned. "But if men can't be vaccinated, and the virus kills at least 80% of the people who catch it, and you don't become immune -- it doesn't matter if women can be vaccinated, without men the human race will go extinct in a century, unless there's some secret Amazon biology breakthrough!"

"No, you're right, as frustrating as they can be, we still need men." Lieutenant Knox looked at Sergeant Hitchens and winked at him. "The vaccine can't be given directly to men. But a vaccinated woman can transfer partial immunity to a male partner during intercourse. That's one of the vaccine's peculiarities. It also creates a biological bond between a man and a woman -- to the point where sexual activity with another male is potentially deadly. There are also some enhancements to both partners. But the bond is the key thing -- a woman cannot receive the vaccine and not be bonded -- she will become intensely sexually driven, and will attempt to initiate a bond with the nearest male within a matter of days. As there are projected to be very few male survivors, and each male-female bond only confers partial immunity, a man must have multiple partners."

"You're kidding, right? You want me to take a vaccine, find some guy and fuck him to give him the vaccine, and then go round up cattle? Oh and there will be other women fucking him, and I can't fuck anyone but him ever again? I know I'm saying fuck a lot, but you've got to be fucking kidding me. Oh, I guess the other women fucking him are supposed to be my helpers? Who may or may not know a fucking thing about livestock?"

"Well, yes, actually. You've summed it up fairly well, Ms. Kopua. Although we don't expect you to 'go find some guy.'" The Army officer handed Evelyn a thin stack of papers. "We've prepared a list of your surviving male colleagues, along with a rough compatibility analysis for each with you based on available records and social media -- once you make a preliminary choice, we will have you and the prospective male partner fill out a very detailed survey to validate the potential match prior to vaccination and bonding. The biological bonding process is currently permanent, although I'm told the scientists are hoping to find a way to negate it one day. But until then, we want to ensure that there's as little friction as possible between bonded partners."

Evelyn began looking through the papers -- most of the faces she recalled from her classes, though none were anyone she'd been friendly with or ever consider as a potential life partner. "Chad Travis? He's potentially a good match with me? Not a fucking chance. That jerkwad said that there are only two places on a ranch for a woman -- on her back or in front of a stove. These potential matches are bullshit." She held up another paper. "Steven here? Yeah, no. He's gay. But look, he's got a bunch of these idiotic 'Match' flags. Guess him being 'comfortable riding horses' and 'outdoorsy' means you guys think we'll be simpatico?"

She began flipping through the papers. "Asshat. Blousy blond. Moron -- even before he got kicked by that Nightingale. Here's another asshat. Oh, you have to be kidding me. No way you're suggesting this racist haole dickhead -- he just needs a white hood to go with that mullet."

Evelyn stopped and sat quietly for a moment, chewing on her lower lip slightly. "What if..." She trailed off and squirmed in her chair a bit. "Would it be possible to suggest someone else? Someone not in this group?"

Lieutenant Knox took the papers from Evelyn. "Ms. Kopua, if you have someone in mind, we can reach out to him and run him through the Oracle survey. I prepared this preliminary potential partner analysis for you based on information that was publicly available, or in government records, such as school transcripts. It isn't as comprehensive as the Oracle survey, but I was hoping that there was someone in the group that you had a positive connection with. But if not, that's okay, as long as we can find someone for you to partner with. May I have his name? If you happen to have his address and contact information that would be helpful -- we can get it of course, if you don't."

Evelyn leaned toward the Lieutenant, "There, uh, might be one problem though. I guess. I dunno. Maybe." She paused, then blurted out, "He's married."

*****

Lieutenant Knox insisted on driving as she and Sergeant Hitchens headed back to the temporary vaccination center -- a converted vacant storefront one road back from Hilo's Front Street.

"Jim-dear, I love you, and I'm really glad I get to have you along -- even temporarily -- on this assignment."

Jim reached over and briefly stroked her leg, "Aww, thanks Shan. I love you too, and while this isn't what I'm used to, it's good to get to experience something different." *Since the brass keeps dicking around on deciding if I'm deployable again!*

"Yeah, I know it's a little out of your comfort zone, and I'm sorry, but there's something we need to work on regarding that before we go to talk to the Pilchards." Shannon flashed Jim an apologetic look. "I need you to be relaxed and engaging when we talk to them. I get that you're used to threat assessment -- and being ready to respond tactically at a second's notice, but I need my sweet guy today when we go to talk to Malcolm, and... fudge, what did Evelyn say his wife's name was?"

"Gwen." Jim supplied.

"Yeah, that's right. You know, I tried looking for his social media to look into the two of them when Evelyn gave me his name and email -- all I found was what looks like a barely-completed LinkedIn profile. And there's nothing to give me a link to Gwen." Shannon smacked the palm of her hand against the steering wheel in frustration. "Who the heck doesn't have an Instagram or even a Pinterest these days?"

"I know a few guys that don't." Jim shrugged. "Not everyone wants to be connected, babe."

"Well, those dinosaurs need to get with the times. Especially now, with the pandemics and social distancing." Shannon shook her head. "But, back on topic. When we go to visit Mal and Gwen, we're going to be there as a Quaranteam-vaccinated, Oracle-matched couple, understand? I don't expect you to stop looking out for threats -- I know you won't, but I need you to be more than an uptight "soldier-boy" standing guard. Joke with me, tease me. Show them that we're still people -- that the vaccine hasn't screwed with who we are."

Jim stiffened at Shannon repeating Evelyn's insult earlier. "Ouch. Damn, Shannon, why do we need to do that? They don't know us from Adam."

"They don't need to. If you're coming with me -- and I do very much want you to! -- I need you to show Malcolm that you're not... zombified, or something, by this vaccine that men get ONLY by having sex with a vaccinated woman. And I need Gwen to see that even though she's going to have to share her husband with Evelyn and at least 2 other women, she's NOT going to become a Stepford Wife."

Shannon reached over and grabbed his hand. "So, when we're there, I'm not First Lieutenant Knox and you're not Staff Sergeant Hitchens. I mean, I'm gonna introduce us that way, but once the opening explanations are out of the way, just treat me as if we're visiting some good friends."

Jim bared his teeth in a grimace. "Jesus wept. Okay, Shannon. This is your assignment, and you're the Civil Affairs expert. If you really think this is necessary?" He looked at her and at her definite nod, continued, "I'll do my best, babe."

Shannon squeezed his large hand. "You do a good job, I'll make it worth your while tonight. You haven't seen everything I packed..." Her voice trailed off suggestively and she shot him a seductive look.

Jim squeezed back. "Oh, you do know how to sweeten an offer, Shan! Like I said, I'll do my best, babe."

-=#=-

Glossary of non-English words:

'āina: Land.

haole: White person.

kānaka maoli: Native Hawaiians.

kanaka: A Native Hawaiian person.

wahine ho'okamakama: ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language) word for whore. Wahine means woman, and ho'kamakama means to prostitute/for prostitution. Evelyn's not feeling very complimentary towards agents of the U.S. Government.

Lili'uo: The shortened, familiar name for the last monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, Queen Liliʻuokalani. Ruled from 1891, after her brother King Kalākaua (Kamehameha IV, the Merrie Monarch) passed away, until she was overthrown in January of 1893 by the "Committee of Safety", a group composed of American citizens, and American-born subjects of the KoH, supported by the U.S. Government. The U.S. formally apologized for its role in the overthrow a century later with the Apology Resolution in late 1993. The collective harm to kānaka maoli remains.

hula kahiko: Traditional hula.

'ae: Yes. The response given by hula dancers to the call Ho'o mau kau kau! (are you prepared; are you ready).

kuleana: Responsibility, obligation.

Nightingale: Yeah, I know, it's an English word. But over here -- particularly on Hawaiʻi Island, it's typically used to refer to a breed of feral donkey -- the Kona Nightingale. Originally used in the coffee industry, they were later turned loose and established a growing population that has in recent years required considerable management efforts. Evvy's former classmate was apparently very unlucky, in addition to apparently being an idiot. Or, since he's still alive in the midst of DuoHalo, after being kicked by a donkey, maybe he is lucky!

Glossary Note: I will likely drop from the Glossary words that have been used in several chapters. Unless I think they're critical or I need to expand on or hammer a point home. Maybe. We'll see. At least one more submission will contain words like haole, kanaka, 'āina, and kuleana.

Finally, another plea for feedback on the word definition methods. As you can see in the Glossary, in some situations, I'm willing to put the explanation of a term in parenthesis following the initial usage. I don't have an issue with that in the Notes or Glossary. If I have to explain a subtle detail, eh, 'a'ole pilikia (no problem, no worries, no big deal). In the body of the story is a different case, as it is where, to me, something like that knocks the reader out of their immersion in the story. But, as I said up top, if there's a distinct preference expressed by you, the readers, I'll take that into consideration.

Ā hui hou mai. (Until we meet again. {Since the story is staying and you are leaving it, but I expect to see you soon for Chapter 5...})